Saudi Arabia bombs Yemen port over weapons shipment from UAE

Saudi Arabia bombed Yemen's port city of Mukalla on Tuesday after a weapons shipment from the United Arab Emirates arrived for separatist forces in the war-torn country.

Saudi Arabia bombed Yemen’s port city of Mukalla on Tuesday after a weapons shipment from the United Arab Emirates arrived for separatist forces in the war-torn country, and warned that it viewed Emirati actions as “extremely dangerous.”

The bombing followed days of tensions over the advance of the separatist forces known as the Southern Transitional Council, which are backed by the Emirates. Despite the warning, the Council and its allies issued a statement supporting the UAE’s presence, even as others allied with Saudi Arabia demanded Emirati forces withdraw from Yemen in 24 hours’ time.

The UAE separately called for “restraint and wisdom” while disputing Riyadh’s allegations against it. It did not say it would withdraw from Yemen as demanded.

The confrontation threatened to open a new front in Yemen’s decade-long war, with forces allied against the Iranian-backed Houthis possibly turning their sights on each other in the Arab world’s poorest nation long stalked by famine and disease.

It also further strained ties between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, neighboring nations on the Arabian Peninsula that increasingly have competed over economic issues and the region’s politics, particularly in the wider Red Sea region.

“I expect a calibrated escalation from both sides. The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council is likely to respond by consolidating control,” said Mohammed al-Basha, a Yemen expert and the founder of the Basha Report, a risk advisory firm.

“At the same time, the flow of weapons from the UAE to the STC is set to be curtailed following the port attack, particularly as Saudi Arabia controls the airspace.”

A military statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency announced the strikes, which it said came after ships arrived there from Fujairah, a port city on the UAE’s eastern coast.